Etisalat Nigeria |

Etisalat Nigeria Owners Said to Face Write-offs After Default

LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) – Lenders who took over Etisalat Nigeria last month after the wireless carrier defaulted on $1.2 billion in debt are being advised to take a writedown to ensure a planned sale of the company is successful, according to people familiar with the matter. Whether to write down the asset has emerged as a sticking point between the owners, who include Nigerian lenders Access Bank Plc, Guaranty Trust Bank Plc and Zenith Bank Plc, and investments…

Etisalat Nigeria CEO Focused on Stabilizing Business Before Sale

Posted on by The Editorial Team

LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) – Etisalat Nigeria is concentrating on steadying the business rather than finding a new operator as the struggling mobile-phone company strives to stay afloat after its Abu Dhabi-based former owners defaulted on a $1.2 billion loan. “The biggest thing we have to do is stabilize the business, try and ensure a good top-line, put some level of control on costs,” Chief Executive Officer Boye Olusanya said in an interview at the wireless…

Banks in stand-off with Etisalat Nigeria over problem loan

Posted on by The Editorial Team

LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) – Nigerian banks have opposed a proposal by Etisalat Nigeria to convert part of a $1.2 billion loan from dollars into naira and want Abu Dhabi telecoms group Etisalat and its other shareholders to recapitalise it instead, a source said. A banker with knowledge of the negotiations told Reuters that the seven-year syndicated loan, on which Etisalat Nigeria missed a payment, has a dollar portion of $235 million which the…

Nigerian Regulator Seeks to Block Takeover of Etisalat Unit

Posted on by The Editorial Team

LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) – Nigeria’s telecommunications regulator is seeking to block a potential takeover of Emirates Telecommunications Corp.’s unit in the country by a group of banks after the mobile-phone operator missed repayments on a $1.2 billion syndicated loan. The Nigerian Communications Commission has urged the central bank to intervene in the matter because it is concerned over the fate of Etisalat Nigeria’s more than 20 million subscribers in the country, the Abuja-based NCC said in an…